Promising new dementia treatment

There is renewed hope for people living with dementia with an Australian trial involving a once-a-day pill underway.

The pill called Anavex 2-73 was shown in a smaller study to relieve symptoms and slow progression of Alzheimer's disease.

"We need to remain cautious in our expectations as the earlier study was quite small, but we are quite excited," Kathryn Goozee, Director of Clinical Research at Anglicare and KaRa Minds Institute of Neurological Diseases, said.

The clinical trial of Anavex 2-73 is promising but it is in its early stages. (9news)

KaRa Minds at Macquarie Park is the first site in NSW to be part of the national trial which is recruiting 450 people with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease.

The drug activates a protein called the Sigma-1 receptor.

"It is a medication which effectively targets a part of the mitochondria of the cell. So it's pushing that cell to bring in together some forces to fight disease process," Associate Professor Goozee said.

Nearly half a million Australians are currently living with dementia and the disease is the second leading cause of death.

Michael Haber is 78-years-old and will be one of the first trial participants in NSW. (9news)